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Many scholars and practitioners have attempted innovative teaching practices in an effort to make complex ideas easier to comprehend and retain. The purpose of this study was to test the relationship between learning and the use of 3D models created to provide physical representations of abstract concepts students could hold and manipulate.

Using a quasi-experimental design, we test both the students' initial comprehension of the concept and their retention of the information four weeks later when the course concluded.

Findings included an initial boost in information retention and a likely increased retention of the information, showing promising trajectories for incorporating 3D objects to enhance teaching in the classroom.

This study provides a unique analysis of the use of 3D printing technology to illustrate abstract concepts. This teaching innovation provides another example of how technology can enhance and engage students through active learning. We find that this approach can increase student retention of material.

The purpose of this paper is to review the impact on interlibrary loans presented by electronic books, and to provide a starting point for discussion.

The authors review the advantages and challenges to interlibrary loans presented by electronic books and recommend a course of action for the academic library community.

The model of providing content in electronic book format threatens one of the oldest traditions in libraries: the tradition of sharing. Now libraries must take it upon themselves to create technologies that support their tradition of sharing while accounting for the uniqueness of ebooks.

This paper aims to initiate a discussion and brainstorming process within libraries which can honor the tradition of interlibrary loans by applying it to electronic books.

Conceptualizations of university governance have varied over time, with some scholars focused on the structure of stakeholder groups such as faculty, staff, and students in relation to how institutions make decisions, others focus on the competing spheres of political influence guiding institutional development, and most recently that higher education has adopted business management structures or academic capitalism. Each of these conceptualizations offered new insights into how universities make decisions and evolve. The interactions between the non-profit aspects of higher education institutions and their effects on the internal governance structures have been underdeveloped. In this chapter, the authors propose an urban governance approach to understanding how actors and their institutions make decisions.

In this chapter, the authors dissect these models and propose a shift in perspective described as academic municipalities. Prior models on university decision-making and its impact on institutional constituents all make certain sacrifices when attempting to conceptualize the complex organizational functions of the university. Birnbaum and Tierney in their arguments do not provide enough value to the structure imposed on higher education institutions by virtue of their non-profit status. The corporate concept does not account for the political ramifications to university functions that reach beyond corporate models. Academic capitalism explains the shift of the university to account for changes in the global marketplace but it does not explain the latent functions of the university, such as contributing to the public good, housing, libraries, public services, and other non-market-based activities. What is needed is an explanation that accounts for both market and political forces at play in the university.

The current scenario of higher education is undergoing a paradigm shift due to, among other factors, globalization, internationalization, cross border exchange of students and student mobility. This socioeconomic change has prompted educational institutions to brace themselves to deliver education in new ways. The authors are living in an age marked by information revolution where the phenomena of physical distance have shrunk giving way to online education and other innovative pedagogies. With the advent of new ways to teach and learn, education the concept of autonomy, accountability and responsibility has become the new buzz words in academia. Universities need to be more flexible and incorporate the needs of society into their mission and vision. Since education at all levels has become a key driver in economic and social development, universities must reorient their focus on the needs of society and the economy. Autonomy in governance and management in education has become the prerogative of higher education institutions and optimum allocation and use of resources have become one of the chief aims of all higher education institutions.

This book explores the creation of knowledge and its dissemination in order to create significant impacts in society. The chapters talk about the highly competitive education market and the transformation it has undergone. Authors from across the globe have suggested interventions that will help in sustainable growth of universities while enhancing quality standards. The chapters present a better understanding of a philosophy of management, society, development and education.

This paper sought to validate a proposed e-service use model that takes into account system's environment and user factors as plausible determinants of an information system's (IS) use that are not accounted for by previous IS use models. The aim is to establish the applicability of the model for e-services and IS design, implementation and use.

This study adopts a quantitative approach to data collection and analysis. Using a systematic multi-stage random sampling, data were collected from 400 university e-library users and analysed using regression analysis to test the hypothesised relationships.

Internal system factors (particularly service quality), user satisfaction, e-service environment factors and user factors (gender, programme of study, level of study and computer/IT self-efficacy) predicted the use of e-services. These findings are partly similar to and partly different from those of the earlier studies, suggesting that more studies are needed to test the comprehensive model of e-services’ use.

This is a replicated study and as such made use of a similar population. These findings, therefore, cannot be generalised to other organisations with users of different demographic profiles.

First, the use of the services provided through an IS is predicted by factors other than user satisfaction, system, service and information qualities. Second, system administrators, designers, library administrators and managers must ensure that these factors are considered during the design, implementation and use of ISs.

The paper argues for the need to design e-services and ISs with consideration for user attributes that may lead to social exclusion if not considered. This is because the environment where an IS is hosted can be a driver of e-services use, especially if management provides the enabling environment in terms of optimal staffing, training, user support and periodic e-service evaluation.

This paper extends research effort in understanding the predictors of use of ISs beyond the traditional system's attributes (information, service and system qualities) to include system environment and user factors.

The study aims to expand the literature on evaluating the performance of professionals and academic libraries, rationalizing management and providing reliable services to the academic community. The performance assessment model covers the four components (management competence, professional experience, financial add/projects and library services) in the context of the knowledge management model.

Based on quantitative data, the study defines a set of assumptions for testing the four components of performance evaluation within a knowledge management framework to develop appropriate and robust models for improving employee performance and library services. The structural equation model has been applied to sample data from 339 administrative librarians at 190 universities in Pakistan.

Statistical evidence confirms that the applicability of the proposed performance-based model enhances management competence, makes accurate decisions, develops professional skills and strengthens human resource organization and knowledge management techniques in developing the efficiency of academic libraries.

In the long term, academic leaders and policymakers value investment in the professional development of top library management as they participate in the decision-making process. Organizing training for service employees, supporting innovative research projects and providing library technology infrastructures ultimately improve academic performance and research when integrated into the knowledge management model.

So far, comprehensive literature on performance and knowledge management has been published separately. However, based on the key data collected by senior library administrators using the structured research questionnaire, the comprehensive performance evaluation research based on a knowledge management model is innovative to improve academic library services and close the literature gap.